CHAPTER 543: WHAT ARE THE ODDS? (4)

"What is wrong with me today?" Brad muttered, scrubbing a hand through his hair. Everything felt off... like gravity itself had shifted. Like the normal had ceased to exist. After all, he wasn’t supposed to care. He wasn’t supposed to chase her. And yet... everything felt so wrong, as if he had done the unthinkable without doing anything. Very few people could make Brad feel that way. Not wasting a single second, he bolted after her without thinking.

Alicia didn’t turn when she sensed him behind her, just slowed her pace enough to let him catch up, without being obvious.

"I didn’t mean that we should break it off!"

"Hmmm.... Then, what -"

Alicia paused, then, calmly—almost as if discussing the weather—she asked, "Let me get this straight: Do you have a girlfriend?"

He blinked. "What?"

She stopped and faced him squarely. Her expression was unreadable. "Girlfriend?"

"No!"

"A partner?"

"No."

"Any other sexual partner?"

"Jeez—wtf! What? No! What’s with all these questions?!"

"Okay then," she said, conveniently ignoring the question, but acting as if satisfied. Her voice was cool, but her eyes held something—challenge? Amusement?

She studied Brad intently as she asked all of these. Because for Alicia, arranged marriage or not, she wanted trust and monogamy like her parents had and Brad didn’t seem to make that cut.

But like her initial thoughts, she was banking on the fact that all Thornston brides had always been truly cherished by their men, notwithstanding the circumstances of the marriage arrangements. It was an over-the-bar assumption, but Alicia wanted to believe that at least.

Brad’s chest tightened with confusion, and he asked, "Why didn’t you just say NO to the proposal earlier, then? That is what I am struggling to understand. Do you like me or something?" Brad asked, trying to keep his voice as neutral as possible.

Alicia tilted her head slightly, lips curling into something dangerously close to a smirk. She was clever enough to realize he was fishing, so she did not answer what he truly wanted to know, but instead said,

"Who am I to challenge the most powerful family on this island? It’s not like this is a bad offer...." she said, her tone syrupy, laced with irony. "Besides... my father’s been pressuring me to marry like yesterday and has given me a two-month ultimatum.... but let’s be honest—" she gave Brad a once-over, "—you’re not hard to look at.... Easy on the eyes, and I can’t see any negatives with you... yet."

He stared at her, heart drumming in his ears. Brad felt so small... seen. For a moment, he didn’t even know where he was. The garden pathway faded. The weight of obligation, of tradition, of family—all of it seemed to lift, replaced by something else entirely.

This woman—this woman—was not the quiet, respectable governess he thought he knew.

There was a flicker of something vulnerable in her eyes now, though she tried to keep her expression neutral. It was brief, and she masked it quickly.

In that moment, she shed the skin of every expectation he’d ever had of her. Her presence shifted. Still composed, but daring. Her perfectly pinned hair and modest dress became part of her power, like a costume she had mastered. A symbol of control, she could rip apart at any moment.

She was sharp. Brave. Unapologetic? Brad was unsure, but one thing was obvious: Alicia was absolutely unpredictable. He could even see a hint of her father in there!

In his position as the second young master, Brad was used to power. He had been raised around it. But this? She? She was a different kind of powerful—subtle, dangerous, intoxicating, and most importantly, surprising.

He swallowed hard. For the first time, he felt very exposed.

She leaned closer. "So, what do you say?"

His defences finally cracked, all chaos dropping from his mind. A laugh—dry, surprised, a little incredulous—escaped his throat. "Well, I’ll be damned." His lips curved into a smile, slow and genuine. "You had a lot hidden."

"Is that a yes?"

Brad still didn’t answer right away. He just stared at her, stunned and slightly breathless at the turn his life had just taken. He also side-stepped her question.

"You know? Let me get this on the table. You’re not unwanted either. It’s just—this whole thing... it wasn’t meant to be like this."

A silence stretched between them.

Alicia continued looking at him, with no obvious reaction, eyes unreadable. She sighed,

"I may be a governess, but I’m not blind," she added, with a small, tired smile. The morning had taken an interesting turn from what she had intended. "Have you thought about how ’perfect’ all of this morning’s proceedings have been?"

He let out a slow exhale. "I know.... But with Ian involved, nothing will ever be left to chance, and it would have been surprising if it were. I admit that he cornered me reall good!"

"So, you do know...."

"Yes,"

Brad said, thinking of Ian’s condition, or was it a threat?

"You actually surprised me, in many ways", he added, his voice softer now. "Still do."

"I didn’t mean to have you dragged into it. I know you’ve worked here a while, and I respect you. I don’t want to embarrass you. And I just—well—I’m sorry."

"Master Brad? Do you want to know what’s truly embarrassing?" she asked, a little smile playing at her lips.

He blinked. "What?"

"It’s this conversation. I thought I’d pay my respects to your brother and his wife and have a quiet morning of tutoring. Instead, I was proposed to by the most powerful family for the most chaotic bachelor. I guess you really have no idea of how prominent your family is, huh? But that aside, I don’t think I come with bad credentials either...."

He actually burst out laughing at that, a full, loud laugh that startled a nearby bird.

"Right?! Thank you!" he gasped. "Exactly that! It was like an ambush.... On both sides! But I -"

Brad stopped himself before he said the words, ’like you...’ She was fun to listen to. Alicia shook her head, the stern look giving way to a fond one. "Your mother has sharp eyes."

"That aside, though, get what you don’t want to say, I won’t marry a man who does not want me, even if he is Thornston.... So, what’s it going to be?"

He straightened up, suddenly serious again. "Before that, can you tell me... how do you feel?"

She paused, then gave him a long, even look. "Surprised. A little flattered. Annoyed at your reactions. Slightly mortified by the attention. And..." Her eyes sparkled just a little, "...curious."

"You’re quite frank." Brad chuckled.

"But why curious?"

She shrugged. "You’re not completely hopeless."

He gasped in mock offence. "That’s the nicest thing anyone’s said to me all month!"

She smiled again, but before he could say more, she turned and started walking off, seemingly okay with the sidestepping and non-answers.

"Let’s talk again—when you’re sure of what you want!"

Brad stood there blinking, the corners of his lips twitching into a slow grin.

"Oh, I’m in so much trouble," he muttered to himself.

"Alicia, wait! Let’s do this!"

Alicia paused and turned to Brad.

"Before you ask, yes, I want to marry you, Alicia, but I will not be a man if -"

"I understand, Master Brad-"

Brad cocked an eyebrow, and she smiled,

"Shall we go back then, Brad?"

Brad smiled and then held out his hand for hers.

From behind the thick garden hedges, not far from them, the same pair of narrowed eyes watched the couple. The leaves barely rustled, but her grip on the branches was tight enough to snap them.

The disgruntled maid—Tammy—had slipped out unnoticed when she saw them vanish into the corridor together. Suzie had already dismissed her from the dining room, so it was easy for her to do this.

She had no business spying, but was still fuming at her ’stolen’ opportunity. Her mood further turned sour the moment she saw the way Brad smiled at the ’thief’. That warm, easy smile he never gave anyone in the staff quarters. Not even her. Especially not her.

She clenched her jaw.

’She’s not even one of us,’ Tammy thought bitterly, eyes tracking the elegant lines of the governess’s back. That governess waltzed like she belonged there, but to Tammy, Alicia didn’t.

Tammy didn’t know Carmichaels, so when his name was mentioned, she had not pieced together Alicia’s background yet. Most importantly, Tilda thought that she knew things. To give Tammy credit, she paid attention.

Alicia might have passed herself off as a humble governess, but Tammy had seen the fabric of her dresses—real silk, not the knockoff ones the rest of them wore on their off-duty. She’d caught a glimpse of a crest stitched into a scarf once—old money. Real money. The kind of money that didn’t just disappear overnight.

And now she had Master Brad wrapped around her finger, too.

Tammy’s mouth curled into a sneer. "Unbelievable," she hissed under her breath as if she needed any more power.

She pressed deeper into the hedge as Alicia and Brad walked back toward the house, laughing softly like they hadn’t a care in the world.

But Tammy’s thoughts burned.

If only he knew what she was capable of. A small, satisfied smile touched Tammy’s lips as a plan formed as she thought,

’He’ll learn soon enough. And when he does... We’ll see how long that smile lasts.’

*********

Thank you so much to all for your votes and comments! I hope we can keep it up ^_^

Support the author by reading only on Webnovel :) ~Uploaded only on webnovel by Loctovia ~